I guess many of us have spent some time in recent weeks considering the waxing and waning of fortunes.

For the purposes of my City Talk columns, I spend a lot of time looking at the changing fortunes of Savannah neighborhoods.

I only moved here in 1995, so I’ve had to catch up on some of the history that many of my readers know off the top of their heads.

For example, many of you remember when Ogeechee Road was one of Savannah’s most vital gateways.

That stretch of U.S. 17 was lined with bustling mid-20th century motor lodges. Herb Traub, Savannah’s leading restaurateur of the era, owned the Harvest House near the intersection of Gamble Road.

The Harvest House building still sits there, boarded up and depressing.

Of course, Savannah’s neighborhoods in the greater downtown area have been on an upswing for nearly two decades now. The improvements and new investments slowed during one recession and ground to a halt in another, but the positive momentum is still clear.

There are obviously many forces at play.

Americans’ changing lifestyle choices are part of the complex equation.

The history of Savannah’s unique neighborhoods has also been intertwined with issues of class and race. Politics has played a role too.

SCAD’s explosive growth and increased tourism have transformed some areas.

And it’s clear zoning codes and transportation infrastructure decisions have had major impacts too.

For example, the northern portion of Thomas Square where I live was seriously damaged by ordinances that permitted the creation of overly large and extremely ugly parking lots.

The Ogeechee Road corridor and other portions of U.S. 17 probably had no chance of continuing to thrive after the expansion of the interstate highway system, but the streetscape today doesn’t need to be quite so unattractive or so hostile to pedestrians.

Simply put, good public policy and sound investment in public infrastructure are vital to the health of surrounding neighborhoods.

Which brings me to the city of Savannah’s plans for President Street. The project would alleviate flooding and also allow for entrances to the Savannah River Landing site.

A couple of years ago, I noted in this column my regret for not speaking up earlier and more publicly about my doubts regarding the entire Savannah River Landing project.

But with the recession now behind us and legitimate prospects for development ahead of us, it’s clear we need a better road over there.

Commuters from the islands have needed a better road for a long time.

Last year’s T-SPLOST would have addressed one of the biggest problems by creating a bridge so rail traffic would no longer force President Street traffic to stop. After soundly rejecting T-SPLOST, we will likely be stuck with the disruptions of the train tracks for many more years.

But President Street doesn’t need to be so low, and it certainly doesn’t need to be so ugly.

There is obviously reason for concern any time a city takes out bonds, but with the economy on the mend and rates so low, now seems a good time to make some key improvements.

We have not yet seen the city’s list of SPLOST projects that voters will consider later this fall, but funding for President Street could be included. Chatham County voters overwhelmingly approved the additional 1 percent sales tax back in 2006, but prospects for this fall’s vote look a little dicey.

Pretty much any time I mention the use of optional taxes to fund infrastructure, I see comments about the regressive nature of sales taxes. While it’s true that sales taxes typically hit lower income Americans harder than other types of taxation, we just don’t have many viable options in Georgia to fund infrastructure projects.

Of course, no matter how much public investment some areas receive, the real key is to lure private investment.

Many have noted the positive impact that the mixed-use One West Victory development is likely to have on the Bull Street corridor and the southern portions of the Metropolitan neighborhood.

But I’m guessing that the influx of new residents and businesses at One West Victory, including Hugh Acheson’s planned restaurant, could spur private investment on West Victory Drive and even nearby along the Montgomery/MLK corridor, which has already benefited from upgraded public infrastructure.

A number of infill housing developments on the fringes of downtown are also likely to improve quality of life in neighborhoods that saw their fortunes wane in the second half of the last century.

Public discourse in cities is sometimes dominated by those who assume that neighborhoods are more or less static, that neighborhoods don’t change much from generation to generation.